It’s Embarrassing That The Today Show Can’t Tell Its Own Black Co-Anchor From Michelle Obama

On this morning’sÂ Today show, co-anchorÂ Tamron HallÂ presented an Instagram photo posted yesterday of a young woman doing ballet (I think she’s doing ballet, at least, I’m no dance doctor). After she asked if they knew who it was, one of her fellow anchors quipped, “That’sÂ you!” Tamron asked, “That’s who?” and again, her co-anchor insisted, “That’sÂ YOU!” Except it wasn’t. It wasÂ Michelle Obama. You can tell this pretty easily by the “@FLOTUS” caption up in the righthand corner and the fact that the girl looks like Michelle Obama.

Yeah, sorry folks, but Michelle Obama and Tamron Hall look nothing alike, including in this photo.

To make matters worse, it is Hall’s first week as a full-time anchor on the show, making her the first black woman to co-anchor theÂ Today show. In an interview withÂ Essence published earlier this week, she said this:

How could I not be walking on cloud nine? Just the other day I was reading about Meredith Vieira being the first woman to host the primetime Olympic shows. Of course, I knew what was happening with my negotiations behind the scenes and I thought, wow, these big moments at NBC News and now I’m a part of this for women, for Black women, for all of us. And I’m just taken aback by it. I can’t even describe to you how it feels.

It is really spectacular that she and many other women are breaking down boundaries in the entertainment and news industries, but it’s unfortunate that within her first few days there, her coworkers already mixed her up with another WOC.

Remember whenÂ ArmaniÂ embarrassed the crap out of itself by confusingÂ Idris ElbaÂ (a 6’3″ 41-year-old black British actor) withÂ Alfre WoodardÂ (a 5’3″ 61-year-old black American actress) on its Instagram after the Governor’s Awards? Fortunately, the Internet co-opted the gaff by creating #ArmaniCaptions, which went something like this:

Excellent adoption and reversing of idiocy, Internet! Because that’s just what you do (sometimes).

Long story short, it would probably benefit people–namely, white people–to not assume all images of black people are the same person. If you see a photo of a black woman, for example, do not say, “Hey, is thatÂ Viola Davis?” even if the subject does not look like Viola Davis, because there are literally millions of black Americans who are not, in fact, Viola Davis and you will sound really, really stupid.

I don’t think it’s fair to say it’s racist to confuse one black woman’s appearance with anothers’. That isn’t what racism is. I think it’s pretty clear that you’re just butthurt and oversensitive. Anyway, go back to school and get a degree in something other than Liberal Arts, and while you’re there have fun rupturing your esophagus from all the big black cocks you’ll be suckin.

Samantha Escobar

Shoot, but I already have a master’s in Upsetting Trolls :(

I_don’t_walk_I_dance

I think she’s doing some kind of theater dance routine, not ballet. You can tell by the lack of turn-out, type of shoes, and placement of the hands and arms.

ASunnyDayinLA

The worst offender, though, has to be well-known Hollywood anchor Sam Rubin who confuses Samuel L. Jackson with Laurence Fishburne, and Jackson isn’t one to let that fly http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToaHQI9X5RI